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on Small Business Management |
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Issue of 2023‒06‒26
sixteen papers chosen by João Carlos Correia Leitão Universidade da Beira Interior |
| By: | Azzeddine Allioui (ESCA Ecole de Management, Morocco) |
| Abstract: | This paper aims to propose, in an original way, a first step which is the use of the social capital theory as an integrative theory of the strategic entrepreneurship specificities of Moroccan family firms. Our study covered a sample of 14 unlisted Moroccan family businesses, 8 of which are SMEs, and 6 are large firms, through qualitative research based on semi-directive interviews with the managers of family firms. Our findings explain the background of strategic entrepreneurship orientations for each of the two categories surveyed. Large family-owned companies are oriented towards diversification and strong involvement in social entrepreneurship, benefiting from a history of entrepreneurial dynamics, succession, family size, and degree of familiarism. Meanwhile, family-owned SMEs move toward strategic refocusing based on a history of stability, social network closure, and social norms. This result is original in that it is the first to explain the relationship between social capital, entrepreneurship strategies, and the size of family firms in the Moroccan context. |
| Keywords: | family business, family SMEs, large family businesses, strategic orientation, entrepreneurial orientation, social capital, entrepreneurship |
| Date: | 2023–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:smo:raiswp:0273&r=sbm |
| By: | Claudia Pigini (Department of Economics and Social Sciences, Universita' Politecnica delle Marche); Alessandro Sterlacchini (Department of Economics and Social Sciences, Universita' Politecnica delle Marche); Francesco Valentini (Department of Economics and Social Sciences, Universita' Politecnica delle Marche) |
| Abstract: | There is extensive empirical evidence of a within-sector heterogeneity in terms of firms' R&D intensity (share of expenditures on sales) which, moreover, does not converge to a common level over time. Using a balanced panel of the world's top R&D investors, we first investigate whether there is a different degree of time persistence along the R&D intensity distribution. Secondly, we analyse whether the persistence in and the transition to different levels are heterogeneous between four R&D-intensive sectors. As a general result, we find that companies starting with low R&D intensities are more likely to move towards the sector medium levels than those exerting a high innovative effort, which persist in the right tail of the distribution. With the exception of the Pharmaceutical sector, company size affects negatively (positively) the persistence and the entry rate into the top (bottom) 20% of the R&D intensity distribution. Differences across sectors emerge with respect to the impact of other company characteristics (profitability, capital investment, and location). |
| Keywords: | Innovation persistence, R&D intensity, High-tech sectors, Large companies. |
| JEL: | O3 L2 |
| Date: | 2023–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:anc:wpaper:480&r=sbm |
| By: | Sorgner, Alina (John Cabot University) |
| Abstract: | This chapter presents the results of a systematic review of literature (SLR) on impacts of Covid-19 on entrepreneurship published in the first three years since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, covering the period between January 2020 and January 2023. Main developments in the literature over time, space and themes are identified. The literature body has been growing constantly over time, with most studies included in this SLR published in 2022 that remained unconsidered in previous SLRs. In terms of spatial distribution of published research, a significant number of studies focus on North American and European countries, while low-income countries and countries in Latin American, Sub-Saharan and South Asian regions are underrepresented. Six main themes (and multiple sub-themes) were identified in the literature: entrepreneurial process, resilience and opportunity, entrepreneurial finance, policy responses to the Covid-19 crisis, gender, and well-being. Research on the impact the pandemic has had on entrepreneurial process, sources of financing, resilience of start-up firms, and opportunities emerging from the crisis has been dominating the literature since the early days of the pandemic and has been growing since then. Emerging themes include policy responses to the Covid-19 crisis and their (unintended) consequences for entrepreneurship, as well as differential impact of Covid-19 on female and male entrepreneurs. Studies on well-being of entrepreneurs, including their physical and mental health, represent a relatively low share of the literature on Covid-19 and entrepreneurship. Implications of the results for entrepreneurship research and practice are discussed. |
| Keywords: | entrepreneurship, COVID-19, systematic literature review |
| JEL: | L26 |
| Date: | 2023–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16201&r=sbm |
| By: | Georgios Tsiachtsiras (AQR-IREA University of Barcelona and University of Bath); Deyun Yin (School of Economics and Management, Harbin Institute of Technology); Ernest Miguelez (Univ. Bordeaux and AQR-IREA University of Barcelona); Rosina Moreno (AQR-IREA University of Barcelona) |
| Abstract: | This paper explores the effect of the High Speed Rail (HSR) network expansion on local innovation in China during the period 2008-2016. Using exogenous variation arising from a novel instrument - courier’s stations during the Ming dynasty, we find solid evidence that the opening of a HSR station increases cities’ innovation activity. We also explore the role of inter-city technology diffusion as being behind the surge of local innovation. To do it, we compute least-cost paths between city-pairs, over time, based on the opening and speed of each HSR line, and obtain that an increase in a city’s connectivity to other cities specialized in a specific technological field, through the HSR network, increases the probability for the city to specialize in that same technological field. We interpret it as evidence of knowledge diffusion. |
| Keywords: | High speed rail, Innovation, Technology Diffusion, Patents, Specialization. JEL classification: R40, O18, O30, O33. |
| Date: | 2022–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:aqr:wpaper:202210&r=sbm |
| By: | Hendrik Hansmeier; Sebastian Losacker; |
| Abstract: | Given that eco-innovations and the associated renewal of economic structures are pivotal in addressing environmental problems, economic geography research is increasingly focusing on their spatio-temporal dynamics. While green technological and industrial path developments in specific regions have received considerable attention, little effort has been made to derive general patterns of environmental inventive activities across regions. Drawing on unique data capturing both green incumbent and green start-up activities in the 401 German NUTS-3 regions over the period 1997-2018, this article aims to trace and compare the long-term green regional development. For this purpose, we introduce social sequence analysis methods to economic geography that allow us to understand the constitution of regional eco-innovation trajectories. The findings suggest that regions mainly display distinct trajectories. Yet, structural similarities emerge in the sense that regions of the same type occur in spatial proximity to each other and show persistent specialization patterns. These range from the simultaneous presence or absence of green incumbents and green start-ups to the dominance of just one of the two groups of actors. Only some regions manage to establish an above-average eco-innovation specialization over time. Since this greening originates from either green incumbent or green start-up specialization, green regional trajectories can be assumed to unfold mainly in a path dependent and less radical manner. In summary, this study provides important empirical and methodological impulses for further in-depth analyses to disentangle spatio-temporal phenomena in economic geography. |
| Keywords: | eco-innovation, green regional development, path dependency, regional transitions, social sequence analysis |
| Date: | 2023–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:egu:wpaper:2313&r=sbm |
| By: | Assa Cohen |
| Abstract: | The Survey of Industrial Research and Development (SIRD) and the Business R&D and Innovation Survey (BRDIS) provide a rich description of R&D at the firm-level. Unfortunately, linking BRDIS and SIRD to other Census data is not straightforward. Standard Census identifiers are often missing, while the identifiers used in BRDIS-SIRD are different in format than those used in other data sets like Longitudinal Business Database (LBD) and the Standard Statistical Establishment List (SSEL). In this project we develop a new crosswalk to address the problem. The crosswalk assigns to each firm-year pairs in BRDIS-SIRD the identifiers of corresponding observations in LBD or SSEL. To generate the crosswalk, we: (i) Infer standard CES identifiers (FIRMID) from variables in SIRD. (ii) Map from BRDIS-SIRD to LBD, and from LBD to SSEL. (iii) Combine the results of multiple linkages, each using a different identifier. The crosswalk allows connecting BRDIS-SIRD with any Census collected data set that uses the identifiers applied in LBD and SSEL. Further, it allows creating links from BRDIS-SIRD to external data using names and addresses appearing in SSEL. In this context, it improves researchers’ ability to use tools that were developed by the Census to connect SSEL to patent data for assigning patents to firms in BRDIS-SIRD. That, in turn, facilitates further study of the relation between R&D activity, reported in BRDIS-SIRD, and innovation outputs, as they are reflected in patenting. |
| Date: | 2023–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cen:tnotes:23-08&r=sbm |
| By: | IKEUCHI Kenta; ITO Keiko; KIM Younggak; KWON Hyeog Ug |
| Abstract: | Entry and exit of firms and changes in employment and productivity are expected to bring about an increase in national economic growth and productivity. However, there is concern that the increasing importance of digital technology with its network externalities will make it more difficult for new firms to grow and overcome the advantages of incumbents, widening the productivity gap among firms. On the other hand, in industries where new technologies, such as digital technologies, are advancing rapidly, it is possible that there will be increasing activity of new firms entering and exiting the market. In this paper, we measure the entry and exit, job creation and destruction, and inter-firm productivity gap within each industry in Japan and discuss the relationship between the progress of digitalization and the metabolism within industries, comparing results with those of European countries. Unlike the results for European countries, the intensity of intangible assets, including digital assets, did not increase substantially in Japan, nor did the productivity gap between firms within industries increase significantly. By examining the differences from European countries, we explore the factors behind Japan's sluggish productivity growth. |
| Date: | 2023–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eti:rpdpjp:23007&r=sbm |
| By: | Julia M. Puaschunder (Columbia University, USA) |
| Abstract: | The contemporary business and management literature offers an ample account of leadership theory and practice guidance. Future corporate employees are trained to climb up the hierarchy to obtain the aspirational goal of leadership. Leadership theory in the Western world appears to focus on large corporations and multi-national businesses. Most recently, literature emerged that points at drawing attention to small-medium enterprises (SMEs), which are actually the majority of businesses, especially dominating in smaller more fractionate market economics, such as the European continent. SMEs are also the most predominant form of business in developing and transition economies. This article draws attention to the importance of shedding light on SMEs in the overall business, economics and management literature. Currently there is also literature emerging on the importance of attention to followership in the wealth of insights already derived for leadership management and practice. Strategic followership aids decision-makers decide wisely how to follow, whom to follow and when to follow. This paper will address followership in SMEs. Lastly, this paper also contributes by drawing attention to an overlooked feature of SMEs in mainly being family firms. The SMEs nature of family business will be investigated from an intergenerational aspect in order to derive strategic followership advice with respect for intergenerational family influences. The paper closes with an outlook of future research in the field of SME strategic followership with respect for intergenerational family business characteristics. |
| Keywords: | Behavioral Economics, Behavioral Insights, Development, Economics, Family |
| Date: | 2023–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:smo:raiswp:0266&r=sbm |
| By: | Karine Revet; Isabel Maria Bodas-Freitas; Barthélemy Chollet; Pablo D’Este |
| Abstract: | Scientists display heterogeneous profiles regarding the focus of their knowledge production activities, their collaboration strategies and their outcomes. Despite increasing interests on research collaboration, little is known about how scientists mobilize their research network. In their knowledge creation efforts, scientists collaborate with colleagues from both academia and industry. These collaborations, leading or not to co-authorship, allow scientists to access to a number of research resources. The objective of this study is to explore whether and how knowledge production across the four Stokes’ quadrants (different focus on fundamental understandings and on immediate industrial and social application) is associated with specific modes of mobilizing research resources. This study examines empirically the relationship between scientific knowledge production, research resources and collaboration networks, using bibliometric and survey data on 116 scientists active in biotechnology in the Netherlands. Our results suggest that different knowledge creation objectives and outcomes are associated with particular ways of activating the network, and mobilize it to access specific research resources. |
| Keywords: | Knowledge creation, Scientific networks, University-Industry collaboration, Resources, Contributions |
| JEL: | M10 O30 |
| Date: | 2023 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ulp:sbbeta:2023-11&r=sbm |
| By: | Azzeddine Allioui (ESCA School of Management, Morocco) |
| Abstract: | Family business is a dynamic field that is now attracting growing interest among researchers, theorists, investors, policymakers, practitioners, and many others. Recent research has shown that family businesses perform very well. Whether measured by their results, shareholder value creation or their ability to create jobs. Family businesses outperform their non-family counterparts. The turbulence caused by global hyper-competition has also brought home the fact that speed, sustainability, flexibility, product and service quality, branding, customer relationships, employee focus, patient capital, and the integration of smart new technologies are real sources of competitive advantage. These advantages are often pursued through idiosyncratic business strategies deployed by family-owned and family-controlled businesses. While family businesses face significant challenges, they also often possess unique advantages born of a unique and dynamic interaction between the family and the business. |
| Keywords: | family business, innovation, culture, governance |
| Date: | 2023–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:smo:scmowp:01259&r=sbm |
| By: | Görg, Holger; Jacobs, Anna; Meuchelböck, Saskia |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we use a novel firm level dataset for Germany to investigate the effect of sanctions on export behaviour and performance of German firms. More specifically, we study the sanctions imposed by the EU against Russia in 2014 in response to the annexation of Crimea and Russia's countermeasures. We find a substantial negative effect on both the extensive and intensive margin of German exports. While the negative effects are strongest for firms exporting products subject to trade restrictions, we provide further evidence on the indirect effects of sanctions. Analysing the impact on broader measures of firm performance, we document that the cost of sanctions is heterogeneous across firms but overall modest. Our results reveal that the negative impact of the shock was concentrated primarily among a small number of firms that were highly dependent on Russia as an export market and those directly affected by the sanctions. |
| Keywords: | sanctions, foreign policy, trade, firm behaviour, Germany |
| JEL: | F1 F14 F51 L25 |
| Date: | 2023 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:ifwkwp:2248&r=sbm |
| By: | Sefa Awaworyi Churchill; Yeti Nisha Madhoo; Shyam Nath |
| Abstract: | We examine if the financial performance of firms in India depends on the level of ethnic diversity in the state or district in which they operate. Thus, using data on 1, 199 listed firms in the materials, industrial and infirmation technology sectors in India, we examine the impact of ethnic diversity on various measures of firm financial performance. Based on indices of fractionalization calculated for 15 states and 74 districts in which these firms operate, we find evidence of negative effects of ethnic diversity on firm performance. These results are robust to endogeneity and alternative ways of measuring diversity. |
| Keywords: | Environmental governance; fiscal decentralization; atmospheric pollution; spillover effects; non-point source pollution; India |
| JEL: | J15 L25 |
| Date: | 2022 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pas:asarcc:2022-01&r=sbm |
| By: | Adi Weidenfeld (University of Warsaw, Faculty of Economic Sciences); Nick Clifton (Department of Accounting, Economics and Finance, Cardiff Metropolitan University) |
| Abstract: | The recent growth of transnational networks of cities requires a better understanding of their role as knowledge networks. For some actors, this growth has resulted in arbitrary or top-down decisions on network membership followed by low commitment and inefficient use of time and financial resources. By reinterpreting secondary data, this paper argues that not only the nature of their institutional settings and actors’ composition but also some specific qualities and the nature of collaborative mechanisms shape the networks’ overall systemic nature. Based on the network perspective the paper advances our understanding of transnational knowledge networks’ growth and the maximising of their effectiveness. Using exemplars, it develops a research agenda for the evolution of transnational networks of regions. |
| Keywords: | transnational knowledge networks, interregional knowledge transfer, regional innovation systems, city networks |
| JEL: | P25 P48 |
| Date: | 2023 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:war:wpaper:2023-14&r=sbm |
| By: | Stützer, Michael |
| Abstract: | The answer is yes to both. For decades, research on entrepreneurship culture has relied on two competing theoretical foundations for the important concept of entrepreneurship culture. One camp views entrepreneurship culture as an aggregate of personality traits conducive for entrepreneurship. The other camp applies Hofstede's (1980) definition of culture as 'collective programming of the mind' towards entrepreneurship (e.g., Beugelsdijk, 2007, Hofstede et al., 2004; Stephan and Uhlander, 2010). In this paper I present empirical evidence that measures of entrepreneurship culture reflecting both approaches explain entrepreneurial intentions and action. Entrepreneurship culture is thus both - an aggregate personality trait and a collective programming of the mind. |
| Date: | 2023 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:tuiedp:176&r=sbm |
| By: | de Haan Montes, Gabrielle; Gvetadze, Salome; Lottner, Felina; Milander, Henry; Pan, Xianxing; Tian, Chloe; Torfs, Wouter |
| Abstract: | This working paper contributes to the understanding of how Greentech ecosystems develop by considering the impact of EU countries' local financial market environment on the prevalence of Greentech investment deal activity. The empirical analysis demonstrates that the occurrence of IPOs in a country incentivises Greentech investors and entrepreneurs, and stimulates deal activity in earlier stages of the market. This suggests an important role for policy intervention at EU-level, as EU policymakers are best positioned to bridge the scale-up gap through the use of innovative financing instruments and thereby support the development of a European Greentech ecosystem. |
| Date: | 2023 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:eifwps:202286&r=sbm |
| By: | Thorsten Beck; Natalie Kessler |
| Abstract: | This paper presents SME financing gaps across European countries over the period 2013 to 2020, using two different methodologies, one reliant on firm balance sheets and one on firm-level surveys. We show significant variation in financing gaps across countries and sectors. Variation over time, on the other hand, is not as strong or intuitive. The account- and survey-based measures are only weakly correlated with each other, reflecting their different nature, and both are only weakly correlated with a survey-based measure of self-reported firm financing constraints. |
| Keywords: | SME Finance, financing gap, firm-level surveys, access to banking |
| Date: | 2023–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rsc:rsceui:2023/07&r=sbm |